

As anyone who’s visited a toy store with a child knows, kids understand the concept of spending money at an early age. What children don’t always understand is how to save and spend wisely. Here are some of the saving and investing basics children can enjoy learning. They can practice these skills every day, no matter how young they are.
Learning to Earn
Paying children an allowance is a good way for them to learn the value of money. It also opens the door to a discussion about the essentials of financial planning, such as banking, saving and spending.
Many parents pay an allowance based on a child’s age. For example, a 12 year old might receive 12 dollars a week. Encourage your children to put aside a portion of any money they receive. They will learn quickly that spending their hard-earned money on an inexpensive toy might mean they can’t afford to buy more expensive items later.
One way you can allocate a child’s allowance is to divide it into three pools – one for spending, another for saving and a third for sharing with charities. This helps children not only understand the value of budgeting and saving, but also helps them develop a sense of social responsibility.
With older children, you can lay the groundwork for their retirement savings by helping them file an income tax return once they start earning money. They usually won’t owe any taxes, but filing a return will generate contribution room for a Registered Retirement Savings Plan (RRSP). This contribution room can be carried forward until they can take advantage of the tax deductions.
Beginning to Budget
Offer to help your older children establish a budget. The budget could factor in money they earn, regular expenses they expect to incur and the savings they need for specific goals. Budgeting can help them distinguish between short-term savings (a CD or DVD), medium-term savings (a bike or game) and long-term savings (a car or education).
Investing for growth
As children grow older, you can teach them the basics of investing. The first step might be to open a savings account for them. This is your opportunity to discuss how banks pay interest for money on deposit. With straightforward compound-interest calculations, you can show how a regular amount set aside each month can grow.
As a next step, try letting your older children invest in a company that produces something they know and like, or a mutual fund that invests in these companies. Showing them where to find information on their holdings in newspapers and on the internet will make tracking their investment fun and rewarding and it will give them a real sense of ownership.
Although teaching your children will help them get on the right financial track at an earlier age, few children can tackle major financial undertakings — like the cost of education — on their own. To help your children save for their education, consider making annual contributions to a Registered Education Savings Plan (RESP). This plan allows savings to grow tax-free until they need them, and lets them benefit from the Canada Education Savings Grant (up to 500 dollars per child per year). Susan Gottlieb
~is a Vice President and Investment Advisor with RBC Dominion Securities Inc. Member CIPF. This article is for information purposes only.
susan.gottlieb@rbc.com
For Mom and Baby
by Julie Watson